mleggott's blog

Imagining Anne: The Island Scrapbooks of L.M. Montgomery

Betsy Epperly is the Founder of the LMMI and her latest book, Imagining Anne, is a rich guide to the scrapbooks of L.M. Montgomery.

One of the current bestseller phenomenon's is the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. The series has grabbed the attention of young female readers in particular (something in common with the books of LMM) and led to a major new motion picture. What would be the common thread between the Anne series and a romance series about vampires? According to Meyer:

''The series influenced how my series turned out. Because I was never a fan of the stories where everything ends and they kiss at the wedding. Anne of Green Gable started out with her as a child, she had a very fully described adolescence, she had a book-long engagement, we got to see her wedding, we got to see her have her first child and lose her first child, we got to see her children grow up. We got the whole life, and I loved that.''

Penguin Canada recently created a new website highlighting their efforts in celebrating the 100th anniversary of Anne of Green Gables. Included is a list of upcoming events and additional information on recent publications by Betsy Epperly and Budget Wilson.

Go to the Conference Site

An International Celebration of Imagination and Creativity in Honor of the 100th Anniversary of L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables

25-29 June 2008

Presented by the L.M. Montgomery Institute of the University of Prince Edward Island Hosted at the Delta Prince Edward Hotel, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island

The L.M. Montgomery Institute of UPEI invites you to take part in a special conference commemorating the 100th anniversary of the publication of Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery's first and most famous book. This international conference will be chaired by three of the worlds most renowned Montgomery scholars: Elizabeth Epperly, Mary Rubio, and Elizabeth Waterston. Featuring presentations by more than 50 international scholars, researchers, students, and enthusiasts and covering a wide variety of themes and topics related to Anne and the idea of "the classic," this is an event not to be missed! In addition to the presentations, there will be a book fair launching many new titles for 2008, special themed dinners, theatrical productions, and optional activities such as guided tours, musical performances, and much more.

Many of you will have noticed that the LMMI website has been given a facelift. This is just one of many enhancements we will be making to the LMM Institute over the coming months, so we hope you will bear with us as we move forward.

One of the most important changes with the new website is the ability to build an even stronger collaborative environment for those interested in all things LMM. Over the coming months you will learn of new sections and tools for building the LMM community, particulary information resources about LMM. For example, a Members-only section will be added, facilitating communication and partnerships with the broader community.

In the creative spirit of this rich community I would encourage you to contact me (or comment on this post) with any ideas or suggestion you might have for how we can make this site work for you.

We will announce new functions and features on the site as they are added, so stay tuned!

Mark Leggott, LMMI Chair